Jesse Biddle

Biddle will likely slip down prospect lists for the second straight year thanks to his struggles while repeating Double-A last season. He struggled with his command which led to a high number of walks...

Manager Ryne Sandberg said Biddle (elbow) has stood out early on in camp, the Philadelphia Daily News reports. "[He's] really doing a good job," Sandberg said. "Every time he pitches and does sides, he has really good command. He's showing his pitches and seems to be really in control."

Biddle entered last season as the Phillies' top prospect but will likely rank second or third on most lists this year. He'll slip because Maikel Franco broke out as one of the better prospects in the game, but he also raised some concerns with a BB/9 that jumped to 5.3 last year, after he had made progress the past few seasons at cutting back on his walk rate. However, Biddle struggled with whooping cough for most of the season and pitched the final month of the season with plantar fasciitis in his left foot, two issues that could have had some impact on his numbers. The positive sign is that his K/9 went up nearly half a strikeout to 10.0 in 2013. Given the higher level of competition at Double-A, the development is a positive sign for his future. The Phillies will likely start Biddle out a Triple-A this season, and at just 22 years old, his future remains bright.

2013

Biddle handled the transition from Low-A to High-A ball last season with little problem. His 9.6 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 were both improvements over the ratios he posted in 2011 at Low-A Lakewood, despite the step up to better competition at High-A Clearwater. Biddle, who throws a four-seam fastball, changeup and curveball, added a slider to his repertoire during the second half of last season, but used the pitch just a handful of times per game to limit the stress on his arm. He just turned 21 years old in the offseason and will be one of the youngest players at the Double-A level in 2013. He'll likely top most Phillies prospect lists based on his excellent numbers and solid upside.

2012

Biddle, the Phillies' top pick in the 2010 draft, went 7-8 with a 2.98 ERA and a 124:66 K:BB ratio in 133 innings for Low-A Lakewood last year as a 19-year-old. He needs to do some work to cut down on the free passes, but there is plenty of time for him to work on things. Biddle did suffer a minor knee injury at the end of last season but he is expected to be fully healthy this spring. He'll open the year at High-A Clearwater.

2011

Biddle, the Phillies' top pick in the 2010 draft, went 4-1 with a 3.92 ERA and a 50:20 K:BB ratio in 43.2 innings between the Gulf Coast League and Short-Season Class A ball last year. Biddle struggled with his control once promoted to Short-Season ball but with only 10.1 innings pitched it's not fair to read much into those numbers due to the small sample size. Biddle could open next year at Low-A Lakewood as a 19-year-old. Ultra-projectable, he throws in the upper-80s now but is expected to increase his velocity. Biddle also features a strong change-up, but will need work on his breaking ball.